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eMOLT Update 2024-04-05
Weekly Recap
Thanks to all of you who signed the letter of support for our
application to the MassTech program for a large eMOLT expansion over the
next few years. Over thirty industry members signed on including many
current eMOLT participants and many captains who’d like to participate.
We’re hoping to use that money to develop a low-cost CTD to feed into
this system, deploy new eMOLT systems on an additional 150 vessels, and
work with DMF to expand our dissolved oxygen monitoring efforts to the
North Shore of Massachusetts. We should hear back from MassTech over the
next month or two about the status of that application, so keep your
fingers crossed.
This week, George was down in Narragansett on Thursday to help with a
hard drive issue on the F/V Cody. Thanks to our partners in Study Fleet
for their quick reporting of the problem, and thanks to Lowell
Instruments for prepping a replacement drive on short notice. We’ve also
been working to prepare gear for our continued expansion efforts up in
Maine. Dr. Andrew Goode is working with three partner vessels to monitor
dissolved oxygen in Boothbay Harbor this summer, so we’re trying to get
that hardware out the door sooner rather than later. Today is the annual
meeting for the Bottom Longline Survey, a Cooperative Research Project
that is celebrating 10 years on the water!

Bottom Temperature Forecasts
Northeast Coastal Ocean Forecast System (NECOFS)


Doppio Bottom Temperature Forecast

Announcements and Other News
For Massachusetts fishermen: South Fork Wind (owned by Ørsted)
announced that their eligibility application for direct compensation has
opened for commercial and recreational fishing vessels that have
experienced economic impacts from construction and/or interruptions
during operation from offshore wind vessels operating in the South Fork
Wind Project Area. PKF O’Connor Davis (PKFOD), the third-party
administrator for South Fork Wind, will be reviewing and processing
eligibility and direct compensation claims. For more info, click
here
On-demand lobster and Jonah crab gear testing is underway off
Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Science Center scientists are working
with commercial lobster vessels to test on-demand (ropeless) fishing
gear in state and federal waters normally closed to lobster and Jonah
crab fishing with static vertical lines. Testing in this area will occur
through April 30, 2024.

Because on-demand gear has no surface buoys, it won’t be visible at
the surface. To visualize the gear positions and orientations, mariners
can download and subscribe to the EdgeTech Trap Tracker app ($25) on the
Apple
or Google
Play app stores. For more information on this work, click here.
Mariners: There is a potential gear conflict area immediately west of
the Great South Channel in former Groundfish Closed Area 1. On-demand
gear in that area is set northwest to southeast in trawls approximately
1.5 nautical miles in length. If anyone accidentally tows up the
on-demand gear, don’t discard it. Hold onto the gear and contact our
Gear Research Team. Contact info can be found here.
All the best,
-George and JiM
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